Making Easy Decorative Wire Rope

Easy and decorative wire rope for all your making needs!

Wire, in whatever thickness and color you want. I have picture hanging wire and magnet wire here.

Masking or duct tape

Wire cutters

2 eyebolts

Power drill

Place one of your eye bolts in the power drill and tighten the chuck.

Find a friend to hold the other bolt, or anchor it in a sturdy work surface

Figure out how much wire rope you need.

Cut at least three times that much wire from the supply spool(adding in an extra 12 inches for trim, slack, etc. per strand). If you need 5 feet of wire rope, cut 18 feet of wire.

If you want more strands of wire in your rope, just increase the amount you cut from the supply. If you want 5 feet of wire rope with 6 strands, cut 36 feet from the supply(5+1X6). Make sure to include the extra 12 inches on to your estimate so you don't wind up short on your final length.

Run the wire through both eye bolts in big loops, until you have the desired number of strands run between each one. Tape the ends to the bolts to make things easier.

Pull the power drill until the wire is run taunt between the two eye bolts. Slowly apply power to the drill while maintaining tension on the wire.

Gradually increase speed to about 1/4 or 1/2 speed(depends on drill)

As you wind the wire up watch for the wire to start pulling in. It will get shorter as you wind it up more. Once you like the spiral tightness of the rope, stop the drill.

Cut the ends off the eye bolts.

If you are worried about the ends enraveling, put on a dab of solder, but I didn't have this issue.

I made several different wire ropes, with multiple colors and by adding thinner wire rope in with straight wire I was able to make some pretty cool patterns and such. I used some to wire wrap the leather on the handle of my Harry Potter style wand. Use it to accent a costume or picture frame. Possibilities are limitless!